Blood Roses
by Gefionne
Summary: Post-Hannibal (novel) AU: Clarice Starling and Hannibal Lecter have been missing for seventeen years. Having gone away together after the incident with Mason Verger, they've been traveling the world. At last, they've settled in Hannibal's home country of Lithuania to raise their daughter, Audra. Despite her unusual parentage, Audra pursues a career in medicine in the U.S.
1. Part I: Vilnius

**One**

There are crowds of brightly dressed people weaving in and out of the boutiques. Among them are many families with small children, each child holding a miniature of their land's flag; three bars, yellow, green, and red. A vendor, bellowing in rich Lithuanian, rolls his cart of flowers through the throng. We approach him slowly, peering around the vibrant wreaths. A handsome couple appears beside the cart. The woman is weathered, but dazzling in her camel colored suit, her blond hair bobbed under her petite hat. The man is taller than her, but not taller than the vendor, who prides himself on his impressive stature. The man wears a precisely tailored, hunter green suit. His sleek hair is peppered with grey under a black fedora with a gold feather in the band. They stop to admire the flowers in the vendor's cart at the insistence of the child between them. They each hold one of her hands.

"A beautiful rose for a beautiful lady," the vendor said, sweeping a blood red rose from its painted water bucket. He held it out to the child.

She took it daintily, politely batting her eyelashes.

The vendor froze as she looked up into his eyes. Hers were maroon and fathomless. Her lips curled into a smile, drawing attention to the beauty spot just at the corner on the left side. She had dark brown curls that escaped the green bonnet she wore. It matched the yellow dress, red smock, and black leather shoes.

"Say thank you to this kind man, Audra," said the woman in accented Lithuanian, crouching down to the girl's level. They had the same pristine skin and the same smile. The woman knew well that it was enough to seduce a man, and she envied the child's innocence in her use of it. Innocence does not last, though.

"Thank you," the girl, Audra, said, dropping a childish curtsey. "It is a very lovely flower." Her speech was fluid and native.

"Perhaps I could procure one just as comely for my wife," said the man in raspy, but flawless Lithuanian.

The vendor looked up at him. The girl had his hair and his eyes. The vendor shuddered, nodding without reply and busying himself with preparing a small bouquet.

The woman, Clarice Starling, stood to take the bouquet from the vendor's hand. She did not smile fully at him, but the edge of her mouth tipped up. The vendor's blood dropped to his groin, but chilled as he turned to the man.

Hannibal Lecter is watching the vendor study his wife. His facial expression does not change, but his eyes burn as he pays the man. The vendor makes a hasty withdrawal.

"Doesn't my rose smell exquisite?" asked Audra Lecter, spinning on her toe and holding it to her breast. She made no move to hold it up to her father, but she reached out to her mother.

Clarice smiled, taking a deep breath. "Yes, darling."

Audra turned her eyes on Hannibal. His teeth showed as he grinned. "It is indeed exquisite…like my beautiful girl." He bent down and held out his arms.

Audra squealed in joy, pressing the rose into Clarice's hand as she ran to Hannibal. The thorns pressed into Clarice's palm, drawing blood. Hannibal swept Audra up, setting her on his shoulders.

He turned to Clarice, who was examining her hand. He took the rose from her and broke its stem, tucking the bud into the button hole of his suit jacket. He held his hand out. Clarice put hers in it, palm up. He drew it to his lips.

To the passersby it was an affectionate gesture from a husband very much enamored, which Hannibal Lecter certainly was. They did not see his tongue dart out between his lips and suck the wound clean.

* * *

**Two**

Clarice Starling is not actually Hannibal Lecter's wife, seeing as neither of them wanted to marry under their assumed names of Emma and Kazimeras Klees. Lecter made the marriage license and documents himself. Clarice did wear a sizable opal flanked by triangle cut diamonds mounted on a gold band on her left ring finger.

They had come to Hannibal's home country of Lithuania eight years before, seventeen years after Lecter escaped from Tennessee and two years after Clarice had been put on the missing persons list in Washington, D.C. They traveled in South America, Africa, and Western Europe during their first years together.

Hannibal had resisted Clarice's interest in seeing the country of his birth until they were in Vienna. They were coming out of the opera house, Hannibal in an Armani tuxedo and Clarice in a green silk, designer gown Lecter had bought in Paris for her birthday.

"Shall we walk home tonight?" Lecter asked. "I'll come around for the car tomorrow."

Clarice, on his arm, nodded. She disregarded her silk heels, glad for the fresh air. She had enjoyed the opera, a Mozart piece with contemporary sets and costumes. It was January, 1993. The costumes were a bit outrageous, and she could tell that Lecter didn't care for them. She could feel him withdraw from her, listening only to the music, as the curtain went up.

Hannibal, of course, wasn't as far from her as she imagined he was. Her smell of almonds kept him anchored hard. He breathed deep her scent as they went toward their hotel.

"Clarice, I would like to ask you something."

"By all means."

"An old friend of mine has secured my real estate holdings in countryside north of Vilnius."

"That's not a question, Hannibal." Clarice was smiling.

"I would like to tell you something, Clarice, and then ask you a question," he clarified.  
"Humblest apologies."

"You may continue."

"As you wish." Hannibal was also smiling. Clarice had not stopped surprising him and likely never would. "This friend has seen to it that the house is prepared for our arrival. I had the chairs from the Paris flat moved there already."

"I love those chairs."

"You would have to consider changing your name, Ida Jacobsen." He addressed her by the name she had assumed in Vienna.

She shrugged. "What difference would it make? I've already had three names. Clarice is like a pet name that you have for me. What would it be this time?"

"Emma Klees, originally from the east coast of the United States."

She looked at Hannibal out of the corner of her eye. "That's original." It was his turn to shrug. "How did I end up in Europe?"

"You met Kazimeras Klees, dated for two years, married, and returned to his home country."

"We've never been married before, always two singles that happened to meet on holiday."

Hannibal took the opal and diamond ring from his breast pocket and held it out to her. She stopped dead in her tracks.

"What the hell is that?"

Lecter looked down at it and then back up at Clarice, mischievousness glinting in his maroon eyes. "It is an engagement ring. May I ask you my question now? I promise I won't get down on one knee."

Clarice glared up at him. "All right. Ask away."

"Clarice Starling," he said her name with the rasp she had first heard in the mental hospital in Maryland, "will you return with me to Lithuania and be my wife?"

"As Mrs. Emma Klees?"

"On paper, yes."

"And off?"

"That is what I'm asking you, Clarice."

She waited, hearing the blood rushing through her ears. "We can't step up to the altar as Starling and Lecter. Interpol will have our asses in minutes."

"That's why this is an engagement ring. We could end up with a long engagement."

Clarice couldn't help laughing with Hannibal. She took a step closer to him and held out her left hand. "Do you?" she said with one of her most sincere smiles, enough to bring flocks of drooling young Viennese to her feet.

"I do," said Hannibal Lecter.

"I do," Clarice echoed as he put the ring on her finger. She reached up and touched his cheek, kissing him.

"Shall we dance our wedding number, Mrs. Lecter?" Hannibal said in her ear. He touched his lips to the gunpowder beauty spot on Clarice's cheek.

"Yes, husband," she said, and meant it.

The street was deserted except for the handsome pair in gown and tails waltzing in the scanty light of the streetlamps.

* * *

**Three**

Audra was the product of a bottle of wine, a lamb dinner, and Russian roulette in the bedroom of the Klees home outside of Vilnius, Lithuania. Hannibal and Clarice Lecter, as they fancied calling themselves under the safe cover of their throws and sheets, had played the game many times before. Sex was a part of their daily lives. Some quiet Sundays when Hannibal was home from the museum in Vilnius, it was the only major activity.

Clarice, no fool, kept a healthy supply of preventative measures in the drawer beside the bed, in a box in the kitchen, in a cubby in Hannibal's study, in with the sheet music in the harpsichord bench, and in the medicine cabinet in the bathroom. One never knows when the mood will strike, and the distance from one room to another can sometimes be painfully far.

Occasionally, though, they were enticed away from the safety of latex. That night in early February, 1993, was one occasion. Hannibal called these occasions 'games of Russian roulette.'

In their past games, they had pulled the trigger only to hear a click; no bullet. As the end of February drew near and Hannibal had not smelled the iron of menstrual blood, they knew this time the gun had fired. The tampons under the sink in the bathroom went untouched for the next nine months.

Kazimeras Klees was heartily congratulated by the museum staff when they found out that his wife, the beautiful Emma, was expecting. The younger clerks hoped he had not heard their mutterings about his age, fifty-five years, but he had. They blushed under his maroon gaze. Thereafter they spoke only of his remarkable virility.

The doctors and midwives clucked over thirty-six-year-old Emma Klees in the months of her pregnancy, seeing as she was much above the average childbearing age in Lithuania. She brushed them off, determined as always.

"We'll have to pick a name that suits both Klees and Lecter," Clarice said as she lay on her back in bed. Hannibal walked the index and middle fingers of his left hand along her naked belly, now cresting after six months. He said nothing. There were many names the passed through his head, but he disregarded them all, including that of his sister. His child would not have to bear the burden of her name.

Clarice had also thought of her parents, but neither of their names seemed to suit the little girl growing inside her. If it had been a boy, though, it would certainly have been called Jack. Even Hannibal concurred on this.

"The wives of the staff at the museum insist on throwing a baby shower for you," said Hannibal.

"That wouldn't be so bad, I think. I'll just tell them that I don't care for cameras. We could have it in the banquet room of the museum." The Kleeses never invited guests to their home.

"As you wish."

Clarice lifted herself laboriously up onto her elbow, enabling her to look over her belly at her husband. Her breasts were already beginning to fill out, though they would not give milk for another few months. She caught Lecter looking at them and raised an eyebrow. "The wives are lovely. They're not simple, but not too curious either. I don't think it would do us any harm, Hannibal."

He slid up to her level, allowing her to put her head back. His left hand rested on her belly. He kissed her on the mouth. She sighed into it, wishing the term would be over so that she could move again.

Hannibal pulled back suddenly, looking at his left hand. Clarice laughed at his amazed expression. For all his knowledge of the human body, he had never before felt a baby kick. He put his ear to Clarice's belly, being careful not to put too much weight down on her. She wiggled down into the pillow and closed her eyes. Long after Clarice fell asleep, Hannibal lay against her, awake and waiting for his daughter to make another move.

* * *

**Four**

Clarice chose to have the baby at home as opposed to going to a hospital. The midwife came, alone, when the contractions started. Hannibal presented her with a twenty-five hundred litai. She asked no questions.

The birth was long and painful, but Clarice took nothing for it. At 4:19 pm on October the 23rd, 1993, Audra Lecter was pushed, with a scream from her mother, into the world. Clarice and Hannibal never succeeded in deciding on a name for her until the moment of her birth. She took her name from the weather conditions at the time. The wind was blowing and it was raining outside, the traditional October storm. Clarice's Lithuanian was still rocky at the time, so Hannibal explained that Audra translated to storm.

The midwife bathed the baby while Hannibal mopped the sweat and tears from Clarice's face and breasts. From the bathroom she heard the cry of the hungry babe. Her nipples tingled; drops of milk appeared.

The floorboards just outside the bedroom door creaked terribly. Had they not, Mr. Klees would not have had time to get to his feet and dab his mouth with his handkerchief. The midwife would certainly have been affronted to see the husband at the wife's breast.

Audra was fussing when the midwife put her in Clarice's arms. Her eyes were open only a crack, but when she felt skin on her cheek, she went in search of a nipple. Clarice helped her to the left breast where the pressure was greater. Her right nipple was still slightly red from Hannibal's tongue and teeth. Audra's mouth was easier on her, but the sucking was certainly more powerful. The sensation stilled the arousal Hannibal had stirred.

"She's a hardy thing," the midwife said. Lecter translated for his wife. "Both of your ladies are, Mr. Klees. I've not seen a better birthing from a woman half her age."

Hannibal tastefully left out the last part in his translation. Clarice beamed.

"If you have any complications," said the midwife, "call me up." She took her bag and Hannibal saw her to the door. He closed it firmly behind her.

* * *

**Five**

The International School is a half hour ride from her home in the countryside, but Audra has her father to take her there every weekday morning. It is her fifth year of primary school. She towers over all of the boys in her class and beats them at the footraces after lunch. She speaks the best English in all of the fifth year, but only because her mother and father speak English most of the time at home. The talks she is not supposed to hear take place in Italian or Spanish, sometimes French. Audra understood too much Russian for them to hold private conversations. French would soon be out, too, since she is to start her French instruction this year.

"Are you going to race Vadimas again in your break today?" Hannibal Lecter asked. He spoke his and his daughter's native Lithuanian when they were alone.

Audra grinned, her maroon eyes shining. "Of course, Papa. If he beats me I have to tell him a secret."

Hannibal raised his eyebrows. "What kind of secret? You wouldn't tell him _our _secret would you?"

Audra looked affronted. "No, Papa! I haven't even told Momma."

"Good girl. I'm so proud of you, my little secret-keeper." He squeezed her hand.

Clarice had agreed that it would be Hannibal who told Audra their real surname, her parents' first names. He said to her that it was a big game that they were playing on the United Nations. It was like a prolonged version of hide-and-seek. She liked the idea and accepted it immediately. From a young age, Audra Lecter knew how to listen to something and then lock it away at back of her mind, never speaking of it again.

Hannibal _was_ proud of her. She was accomplished on the keyboard, though it was a level of aptitude expected of a girl of ten. She read aloud to her parents every night after supper, before she went to sleep.

Her room was expansive, but she only ever used a part of it. She had a few stuffed toys, but preferred to play outside with the children in the neighboring town. They were poor, all boys, but Audra was their fearless leader. She had thrown the oldest boy, Paulius, into the mud and thereby declared her reign. Paulius was not much to overthrow, though. He was a year below her in school and shorter.

On the rainy days that Audra had to stay inside, she played like she was the woman on the news broadcasts. She even wrote her own household newspaper. She would read an article from her paper on Sunday then her father would read one from his paper. Clarice would then read an article from the _Washington Post_. Audra always wrote one article in her paper in English to please her mother.

"'…and the mangy pack of boys succeeded in chasing the beautiful deer away before the girl could touch it,'" she concluded. The headline had been, "Daughter of local museum curator nearly tames wild deer."

"Did you really come so close to it?" asked Clarice in Lithuanian. She was sipping her coffee with her elbows on the table.

Audra nodded. "It was the most beautiful thing I'd ever seen, Momma! I wish I could have one as a pet. Paulius and Jurgis have a dog. May I have a dog, Papa?"

"No, dearest," Hannibal said.

Tears welled up in Audra's eyes. "Why, Papa? Elisa at school has two cats _and_ three dogs. All I want is one! Momma, why can't I have a dog?"

Hannibal looked over at Clarice. She read his eyes easily enough. The secret had to be discussed and therefore she had to be gone.

"Papa will explain it to you, dear heart," Clarice said, kissing Audra's forehead. The girl whimpered as her mother went into the kitchen.

Hannibal knelt beside Audra's chair. "Remember what I told you about our secret, Audra? If ever we have to leave, we can't take a dog with us. Nor can we take a horse, goat, or cat. That is why you cannot have a dog." He wiped a tear from her cheek. "Do you understand, dearest?"

She nodded feebly. "Yes, Papa. Jurgis said I could come over and pet his dog whenever I wanted to."

Hannibal suppressed a smile at the sexual innuendo, completely unknown to his daughter. "That's the strong girl I know." He took her hands in his and danced her up off of her chair. He launched into a folksong, his tenor filling the house. Audra laughed and joined in. Clarice came in from the kitchen and joined their circle. When they finished spinning, they were nothing but a gaggle of arms wrapped around each other.

* * *

**Six**

Audra Lecter first discovered what her smile could do at the age of fourteen. It was Vadimas, her old footrace rival, who revealed it to her. They were walking together in downtown Vilnius after school. She always walked to the museum where she would stay until her father was done with his work. She didn't mind since his assistants had soda and chewing gum for her, both of which her mother forbade.

"Papa knows I'm going to be a little late today," Audra said to Vadimas, a lanky boy with blond hair and blue eyes. He was lithe and built for speed on his feet.

"Shall we walk to the riverside, then?" Vadimas asked. He hoped and prayed that she would say yes. He had discovered the joys of masturbation three years before, and from the beginning it was Audra's face that swam before his eyes as he did it. Just one real kiss from her would be enough fodder for his nocturnal pleasures for the next three years.

"Race you?" Audra giggled, flashing him one her smiles.

He clamped his hands down on Audra's shoulders and kissed her.

Audra had seen her mother and father kiss many times. Once she had caught them at it around the side of the garage, where they thought she couldn't see. Momma had her slender arms around Papa's neck. He held her by the waist. It seemed like they liked it, so Audra figured she might too.

Vadimas's lips were strange on hers, his fingers digging into her shoulders. She didn't know what to make of it, but the longer it lasted, the more pleasant it became. She was disappointed when Vadimas pulled away and took off toward the riverside, calling, "Race you!"

Audra gave chase, catching quickly up to him. They were both out of breath when they reached the shaded banks. Vadimas grinned and Audra smiled back. When they went to each other, Audra put her arms around his neck and he put his hands on her waist. Audra decided that kisses were something grand.

"A young gentleman saw our dear Audra to the museum today," Hannibal told Clarice as the three of them sat around the dinner table that evening.

Clarice turned to her daughter. Audra looked right back at her, not blushing for a moment. Clarice resisted a smile and spoke solemnly to Hannibal, "Well, I do hope he was handsome because I don't always trust Audra's taste. Remember those bright red jeans she used to wear?"

"Momma, there was nothing wrong with those!"

They ignored her. Hannibal said, "He was gangly-looking, though I'm sure he could outrun her."

"I beat him every time!"

"He'd have to be fast if he is going to get away from her charm and beauty. Did he kiss you?"

Audra raised her chin. "Yes, Momma, he did."

"How was it?" Hannibal asked, taking a bite of the steak from his fork.

"Splendid, although I'm sure we're not as proficient as you and Momma, Papa."

Clarice nearly spit her wine across the table. Hannibal was laughing.

"When one has been kissing as long as your papa and I have," said Clarice, "one certainly becomes proficient."

Audra pushed her peas around on her plate. "I don't think I want to kiss him as long as you and Papa have kissed. What if Paulius or Jurgis are better at it than Vadimas? Wouldn't I want to kiss them instead?"

"Very logical, darling," Clarice said. "Choose the one who's best."

"Why don't you kiss them all and find out?" Hannibal said. "Practice makes perfect."

Audra was determined thereafter. She spent the next four years of her life sampling the kisses of various Vilnius boys. Vadimas grew with her, occasionally sharing one of the kisses or slipping his hand up inside her shirt to touch her breasts, but she found that there were others that pleased her more. Vadimas was very displeased.

One evening, when Audra was sixteen, they were watching a racy American movie in Vadimas's bedroom while his parents were out. It had been a tradition of theirs since their early secondary school days. They often saw less than half of the movie.

This film was no different. They were sucking face as usual when Vadimas's hand slipped down from Audra's lacy bra (borrowed from her mother) and up under her skirt. She gasped and pushed him away.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Come on, Audra, you know what I want."

Clarice had frankly given her daughter the sex talk each year from the time she was twelve. They had gradually made it into a special day in the house when they sat at the kitchen table and talked over a big bowl of popcorn. Hannibal always made sure he was out on those days. This year's talk had not yet taken place, but Audra knew the mechanics of sex, its risks and its attractions.

"I already told you no, Vadimas."

He shrugged. "You such a tease, Audra. You can hardly keep your lips off of me and yet you push me away as soon as—"

"I don't want to have sex. I just want to have fun. Can't you do one without the other?"

Vadimas's cheeks began to flush with frustration. "We've always had fun together. Sex would be fun, too."

Audra made a face at him, crossing her arms. "It's just too complicated."

"Fine."

"Let's forget the whole thing happened." She put her hand on his cheek and kissed him gently. She squeaked as he rolled on top of her, pushing her against the bed.

Audra had been bigger than Vadimas until secondary school. After that he grew five inches and started lifting weights. She could still outrun him, but never overpower him.

He was weighing her down with the full mass of his body, his mouth pressed against hers and his hands working her skirt up to her waist. She tried to pound on his chest, but he held her wrists above her head.

"Now, now, it's just a bit of fun. I'm tired of your teasing. I'm going to fuck you whether you like it or not, Audra."

She spit in his face. He slapped her. Pain exploded in her cheek. He kept his weight on her legs, preventing her from kicking. "You've always been a bit catty. I wonder what you're like on top." He kissed her again. She bit his lip, tasting blood.

He pulled sharply back, freeing her hands. "You little bitch!"

Audra took the lamp from the bedside table and brought it across Vadimas's head. He crashed into the wall. Audra sprang from the bed, only to get tangled in the electrical cord for the lamp. She fumbled to get free.

"You fucking whore! Get back here!" Vadimas howled, latching onto her blouse. The fabric tore. The electrical cord was ripped from the wall. The prongs scratched across Audra's forehead. She hardly felt it since she was already running down the stairs.

She was wearing her track shoes and as soon as she hit the street, her feet carried her faster than she had ever run in her life. She wished vaguely that she could run that fast at the track meets.

Vadimas's house was six blocks from the museum. Audra didn't look back as she ran.

She burst through the front doors, startling several patrons. Leonas, a bespectacled clerk with scars from acne, was behind the ticket counter. He called her name, but she soared past him. She bypassed the elevator and ran up four flights of stairs to her father's office.

"Papa!"

Hannibal Lecter was at his desk looking over the floor plans for the new extension of the museum. His wooden chair hit the floor as he sprang up and around to his daughter.

He swore in English. "Audra, Audra, what's happened?" She buried her face in his shoulder. She smelled of fear and sweat. Her forehead was scratched, though not bleeding. Her skin was red where her blouse had ripped. The stale scent of cigarette smoke clung to her clothing. Beneath that was the faint vaginal odor of recent arousal. Hannibal was disconcerted to find that Audra smelled just like Clarice when she was aroused. "What the hell did that Vadimas boy do to you?"

"Nothing, nothing," Audra sobbed. "I ran away before he could—he had me on the bed. I told him no, but he wouldn't listen. He called me a whore. Oh, Papa, Papa!"

Hannibal drew her tightly against him. Leonas appeared in the doorway. He was out of breath from bounding up the stairs after the distraught Miss Klees. He was only four years older than her and found her stunningly beautiful. The slightest thought that she was in distress chilled him.

"Mr. Klees—_gasp_—she came in—_gasp_—from the street, sir—_gasp_! I couldn't get a word from her downstairs. Whatever—_gasp_—is wrong?"

"It is a family matter," Hannibal snapped. "Shut the door when you go."

Leonas, unaware of Mr. Klees's ferocious side, stumbled back with an apology.

"Audra, darling," Lecter cooed, "come and wash up. Shall I call your mother?"

Audra's eyes bulged. "Please no, Papa! You can't tell her. She'll be beside herself! You know how angry she can get. Remember when Jurgis threw that stone at me when I was kid? She found him and spanked him with the wooden spoon, dragging him by the ear back to his mother."

Hannibal's calm gave Audra no sign that he would exact a much more terrible revenge on Vadimas than Clarice did on Jurgis. He sighed. "Audra, this is not something you can hide from your mother." He glanced at the door and switched to Italian. Audra was now fluent. "You were nearly raped!"

Audra hissed. "I know," she said. "You don't have to spell it out for me, Papa. I just got away. I can't believe that bastard tried to force me!" She called Vadimas several other things before Hannibal interrupted her, "All right, you go into the washroom and get cleaned up. I call down to Leonas and tell him to pick you up a new blouse. After that I'll phone your mother to come get you because you're feeling ill. If I bring you home she'll surely be upset.

"Go with her and tell her what happened when you get home. Don't let her turn around and come back to the city. I will be home late."

Audra's maroon eyes narrowed. "You're not going to do anything rash, are you, Papa?"

He kissed her on the brow and said, "No, darling." It was the truth. The death of Vadimas was already laid out in his head, nothing rash about it.

While Audra cleaned up, Hannibal picked up the phone and dialed. He made sure his daughter was running the water as he spoke.

"Hello?" Lithuanian.

"Clarice."

"Hannibal? What is it?" English.

"Audra's here. That little fuck Vadimas tried to get at her."

"Son of a bitch!"

"Yes, I always thought his mother was a bitch."

"Hannibal, I'm not fucking around here. Is Audra all right?"

"The only casualty was that blouse from Rome. She's intact."

Clarice shuddered at the double meaning in his tone. "Are you bringing her home?"

"I'd rather you came and got her."

There was a pause on the other line. Clarice's voice was dark when she spoke again, "Make sure he's not found or we'll be up to our chins in shit."

"Clarice, you know better than to doubt me."

"Castrate him before you end it, Hannibal. That will be from me."

"As you wish, my love. I'll see you in thirty minutes?"

"I'll pull up outside." She hung up.

Dr. Lecter rang down to the ticket counter. "Leonas, will you do me a favor and go to the boutique down the lane and pick up a green, ladies blouse with long sleeves, size small. Thank you."

Audra looked fresher when she was dressed in the new blouse and had washed her face. She smiled feebly and hugged Hannibal tightly. "I love you, Papa."

"And I you, darling. Look, there's your mother now. Let's go down to see her."

Clarice, dressed in jeans and a short-sleeved tee shirt, embraced Audra. "Darling, I heard you're not feeling well. Would you like some chicken soup when we get home?"

"Yes, please." She coughed a little for good measure.

"Go and get in the car, darling. It's warmer there." Clarice was swiftly approaching her fiftieth birthday, but she still got Hannibal's blood to rise as quickly as she had the night they first made love.

She noticed his appreciative scrutiny of her and stepped closer to him. He drew in her scent, felt the warmth of her body just a handbreadth from his.

"Be careful," she said. "It's been a long time since you've done this."

"One never forgets how to ride a bicycle," Hannibal said, smiling.

Clarice kissed him, lingering. It had been two days since they'd last slept together. The kiss was as much as blessing for the task ahead as a reminder of what awaited him at home. "Good luck. I love you."

"I love you, Clarice. Watch over her tonight." He watched them speed away in the Bentley.

* * *

**Seven**

The hype over the mysterious disappearance of Vadimas had died down long before June of 2010. Audra, now seventeen, graduated with honors from the International School. She never spoke of the day with Vadimas to her parents after she had cried in her mother's arms. Papa hadn't since given her a reason to suspect that he was behind Vadimas's disappearance, but somehow she knew it was him.

She had never spoken of the secret she kept for her parents, but as she grew she began to grow more and more curious. She went to the library after school.

Audra signed on the computer in the far corner of the library, away from the circulation desk. She would have done the research at home, but she feared that Momma and Papa would find out. Bringing up the Google search engine, she typed in, "Lecter."

The Lithuanian sites were most genealogical. Lecter was a fairly common name in the country and even in the Czech Republic. She selected all English websites and got altogether different results.

She read about Hannibal the Cannibal, his crimes, his trial, and his escape. The man in the pictures was her father, younger and with some different facial features. In one of the profiles was the suggestion that the escaped Dr. Lecter might have attempted cosmetic surgery to change his appearance. The details on the surgical removal of the sixth finger on his left hand were identical to Papa's. Audra was morbidly fascinated, as so many Lecter-buffs had been before her.

_Only he's not their dad_, she thought with a slight flicker of pride. The sick feeling in her stomach returned only a moment after. Her father had done so many horrible things? It hardly seemed possible. He was a quiet scholar.

A name at the bottom of one of the profiles caught Audra's eye. Clarice Starling. She clicked on the link.

_Dr. Lecter is the prime suspect in the disappearance of FBI Special Agent Clarice Starling (pictured below). She had worked with him on the Buffalo Bill serial murder case in the 1980s while Lecter was incarcerated. If you have any information regarded Lecter or Starling contact the FBI at…_

Starling, Audra learned, was her mother's maiden name. Clarice, at twenty-seven, looked strikingly like Audra herself, only with blond hair and green eyes. So, they had run away together. It was twisted, and made no sense to Audra, who had seen her parents all her life. They still acted like they were young lovers. It had always made older Audra smile.

She closed the windows on the computer and signed out. She drove herself home in the Jaguar she had gotten for her seventeenth birthday. She kissed her mother when she got home and hugged her father when he arrived from the museum. She did her homework while dinner was being put on. She listened to her father singing as he cooked, her mother laughing as he danced her around the kitchen. It was their dinnertime ritual to flirt like newlyweds.

"Dinner!" Clarice called up the stairs.

Hannibal had made an exquisite salad with nuts and berries to start. Audra chatted pleasantly with him and Clarice through the first course. They were speaking Lithuanian.

The meat, beef, was tender and lightly marinated. It nearly melted on Audra's tongue. She swallowed it and said, in English, "Papa, does a man taste much like filet mignon?"

Audra expected a fork to clatter to a plate or a glass to be broken, but Clarice paused only for a moment. Hannibal looked over at his daughter slowly. She saw that his eyes were afire.

"It depends on the cutlet," her father said calmly as ever. They finished their dinner in silence. Audra loaded the dishes in the dishwasher as she always did. As she was about to leave for the library, her mother came into the kitchen.

"I suppose we should have told you a lot sooner," Clarice said. "Would it have been better to hear it from us that from…the internet, I'm guessing?"

"I would have laughed at you like it was a joke," Audra replied. "I'm glad I found out on my own. Did Papa really kidnap you?"

"No, darling. You wouldn't have read about the fiasco with Mason Verger. Why don't you sit down and I'll tell you."

"Could you tell me from the beginning?" Audra laughed. "You'd never said how you met Papa."

Clarice and her daughter were up into the wee hours of the morning. Two bowls of popcorn and a pot of coffee later, they had arrived at the present.

"He killed Vadimas, didn't he?" Audra asked.

"Yes."

"Was he mad? Papa, I mean."

"I've never seen him so upset in my life."

"He didn't…uh—you know…"

Clarice squeezed her hand. "Absolutely not. He doesn't do it anymore."

"You made sure of that."

"I helped him to realize that he didn't have to anymore."

"Why did you pretend you didn't know about 'our secret', Momma?"

Clarice shrugged. "I was best for you at the time. You father and I have always wanted what's best for you and nothing less."

"I know. I wouldn't change anything even if I could. I love you, Momma, and Papa, too. No matter what."

The door to the kitchen swung open. Hannibal Lecter entered, looking a bit tired. Audra smiled, hurrying over and hugging him. He gave no outward sign of it, but Clarice could see how relieved he was.

* * *

**Eight**

When Audra was accepted to the University of Maryland's pre-med program, Hannibal and Clarice threw a party for her and her closet friends, mostly young men. Clarice was thrilled that Audra wanted to study in her home country. She was nervous about sending her only daughter away, though.

"Momma, nobody has any idea there's a Lecter-Starling baby crawling around, let alone a Lecter-Starling pre-med student. Most people likely think Papa's dead."

"I'm not _that_ old," Hannibal said from the kitchen.

"Seventy's not twenty, Papa!"

"Sixty-nine, mind you."

"Come off it, you two," Clarice laughed. "Perhaps you're right, Audra. Besides, you're a Klees."

Audra bit her lip. "Well, about that…"

"She put Lecter on the application, Clarice," Hannibal said.

Clarice swore.

"There are tons of Lecters in the Czech Republic, Momma," Audra said quickly. "That's where my new passport's from. Papa got it all in order for me. I'm Audra Lecter of Prague."

"You're going to get questions," Clarice growled. "'Are you related to _Hannibal _Lecter?' Lecter like the cannibal Lecter?' Christ, Audra, what were you thinking?"

Audra put on her most disgusted face and American accent. "That's unthinkable! That monster is _generations_ behind on my family tree."

Hannibal was chuckling. "_Brava_, _Madonna_ Lecter! Well played."

Clarice rolled her eyes. "I can't believe I'm agreeing to this."

Audra smiled slyly. "Don't worry; I'll put an ad in the _Globe_ for Christmas and your birthdays."

Clarice swore again.


	2. Part II: Baltimore

**Nine**

Kenneth Reinhart, twenty-five, is straining his eyes over the list of incoming legal aliens at the International Airport, Baltimore, Maryland, USA. He has a raging headache and no aspirin. He cannot leave his desk until all the new-comers have been passed through the computer system. It is a long list today.

A few come up with minor traffic violations in their home countries, but nothing more. Kenneth moves on to the next on the list: Lecter, Audra H. – Country of Origin: Czech Republic. He types her name into the computer. Instantly, an orange box appears on the screen. Her last name matches one on the Interpol most wanted list: Lecter, Hannibal. Kenneth's brows fly up.

"You've got to be kidding me," he says to himself, but checks out the flight information. The flight, originating from London, has just landed and the gate is about to be opened.

"Shit." Kenneth takes his US Customs badge from beside his coffee on the table and takes off at a brisk jog to Gate 31. Emily, his assistant, tries to say something to him as he bolts out the door, but he doesn't hear her.

Kenneth calls down to the gate security on his walkie-talkie, "This is Customs Agent Reinhart. I have authorization to detain Flight 447 passenger Audra Lecter." He brushes past several belligerent passengers. A group of girls turn to look at him, smiles and whispers exchanged between them.

"Copy, Reinhart. We'll make the announcement on the plane."

"Thank you, gate. I'll be there in less than five."

"Copy. See you in a bit."

Gate 31 was thankfully not scheduled for use until later that evening. The usual crowds waiting to board were absent.

The TSA officer on duty was a perfectly groomed, lightly perfumed male with bleached blond hair. He smiled and waved to Kenneth, who came up and shook his hand. "Peter, how's your existence today?"

"Not too shabby," replied Peter, "although I haven't seen a beautiful face yet…until yours, of course."

Kenneth laughed. "You're never going to stop asking me out, are you?"

"If I ask enough times, maybe you'll decide to come over to the dark side," Peter said. He had been an admirer of Kenneth's since Reinhart arrived on the job a year ago. Peter was a flaming homosexual. Kenneth was used to his teasing innuendo; it didn't bother him like it did the other customs agents. Xander Reinhart, Kenneth's older brother and childhood best friend, was currently living in Toronto with his husband, Eric.

"Have you made the announcement?"

Peter nodded. "They're sending her up now."

The door to the skyway opened, revealing a rotund stewardess. "One for customs."

"Here," Kenneth said, stepping forward.

The stewardess sidestepped, revealing a slender young woman in a camelhair skirt suit. She carried an Italian leather shoulder bag and her curly hair was swept up in a neat bun. She looked as though she had just taken a brief car ride, not a twenty-plus-hour plane trip.

Kenneth asked, "Audra Lecter?"

"Yes, that's me. May I ask what this is all about, sir?" She spoke beautiful English with only the slightest Eastern European lilt.

"If you would come with me, ma'am, I will explain."

She regarded him with her dark eyes. "And what is your name, sir?"

"Reinhart."

"Is that supposed to be like Bond, James Bond?" She was mocking him.

Kenneth frowned. "_Agent_ Reinhart. If you'll follow me, Ms. Lecter…"

"Miss," she corrected as she went after him.

They set off down the packed terminal toward the nearest customs satellite office.

"Aren't you going to ask me how the flight was?" asked Audra Lecter. "No? Perhaps, if I have ever been to America, then?"

Kenneth ground his teeth. "There will be time enough for questioning when we get to the office. I don't bother with pleasantries."

"How disappointing for you."

He turned sharply to her. She was smiling lightly and seemed genuinely dissatisfied.

She looked over at him out of the corner of her eye. "Pleasantries may be tedious, but they are a necessary evil," said _Miss_ Audra Lecter. "I was just trying to lighten the mood. You seem so terribly tense, Agent Reinhart. Have I done something wrong?"

"Not that we know of, Miss Lecter, but we just have to take a closer look at your passport and documents."

Terminal D's customs satellite was cramped and managed by an old agent who smelled like potato chips. From the way Miss Lecter's nose wrinkled when Kenneth pushed the door open, she smelled it as well.

"Reinhart," said Kenneth to the agent at the desk. "I have Miss Audra Lecter. We'll be in the interview room."

Audra felt the older agent's eyes tracing her body, and she felt a hot surge of anger. _First this prick of a customs cop and then sexual harassment_, she thought. _Fucking great welcome_. She stormed past the desk and into the adjoining room. Agent Reinhart followed her and shut the door.

Miss Lecter was standing beside her chair with a quizzical look on her face.

Kenneth sauntered over and pulled the chair out. "Would you please sit?"

She did. "Will you now tell me what this is about, Agent Reinhart?"

He bit back a sharp retort and asked, "What is your country of origin, Miss Lecter?"

"I was born in the Czech Republic, if that is what you mean."

"Did you travel from Prague today?"

She looked at the gold watch around her right wrist. "Yes, although it is now tomorrow in Prague."

"I'm aware of the time change, thank you, Miss Lecter."

Audra gave him a cold look down her nose. "If you don't mind me saying, Agent Reinhart, you know where I came from, what papers I'm carrying, and what my purpose in the United States is, and my full name. Can we just cut to the chase? What is the problem?"

_Rich bitch_ was the first thing that came to Kenneth's mind. Miss Audra Lecter was just a spoiled brat coming over to pretend to go to school while she spent more time partying. Her eyes narrowed, and he thought for a moment that she could read his thoughts.

"You are going to begin a course of study at the University of Maryland, Miss Lecter?"

"Yes. Pre-med."

"Are you looking forward to being called Dr. Lecter?"

She blinked, her maroon eyes burning. "Are you aware of how long it takes to procure a medical degree, Agent Reinhart? I will be in my thirties before I am a true MD. I imagine that I will be married before that. I will be Dr. Something Else, not Lecter."

"Marriages are happening later every year," Kenneth said before he could catch himself. "I suppose things are different where you come from, though."

If she was insulted, she gave no sign of it. "Are my plans for matrimony the reason I am being so rudely interrogated, Agent Reinhart?"

"No," he snapped. "May I ask your parents' names, Miss Lecter?"

"Emma and Kazimeras Lecter. Father is Lithuanian by birth and mother American. Her maiden name was Stewart. They met over here and moved to Prague to work at the International School."

"All I asked for were their names."

"I thought I would save you some time in asking me if I was any relation to Hannibal Lecter."

Kenneth stared at Miss Audra Lecter. It was stupid of him to assume that she had not been questioned about her parentage before. "Yes, well…"

"Lecter is common enough name _where I come from_, Agent Reinhart," she said, nearly spitting poison. "Cannibalism, on the other hand, is not so common. Hannibal Lecter is a ninth cousin of my father. There are several levels of removal, but I've forgotten them. Does that answer your question, Agent Reinhart? May I go now?" She went to get up.

"Sit down please, Miss Lecter," Kenneth growled. "You may have pristine papers and your well-to-do carriage, but US Customs does not fool around. On account of your behavior, I have all the reason to run a background check on you. I can trace you back to the first diaper you used."

"I'm sure rudeness and threats would not hold up well when I speak to your superior, Agent Reinhart." Audra crossed her arms over her breast. "I will not say another word to you until I have spoken to the agent in charge."

Kenneth stood up from where he was leaning on the table. "I think we're done here." He opened the door and went out, leaving Audra to take her own leave.

* * *

**Ten**

Audra kissed her parents goodbye in her hotel room in Prague. They made sure she had all of her luggage. Papa supplied the visa and Czech passport.

"They'll ask you about him," Momma said. "Are you ready to answer?" Audra looked over at Clarice without nodding. She took the hint. "Sorry, darling, I'm just worried. Can you cut me a little slack for being a mother?"

Audra laughed. "Momma, I'll miss you too."

"Audra," said Papa, "you can always call if something happens."

"Calls can be traced," Audra said darkly.

"We can be gone from the house in a quarter hour," Hannibal Lecter said. "It only takes it a few hours to burn to the ground."

"You would burn it down, Papa?" She was wide-eyed.

"If we have to run, Audra," said Clarice, "we have to run fast and leave no trail. As soon as we'd crossed the border, we'd dump the car too." From the way her parents looked at each other, Audra knew they had done it before.

"Okay, only if something happens," she said.

They embraced and kissed each other goodbye. Audra wept when she saw Clarice was biting back tears. Hannibal's stony face was just as heartbreaking. Audra hugged him with all the strength she had. She watched their Jaguar disappear from her window.

The flight from Prague to London went smoothly. She had just enough time to use the restroom and grab a bite to eat before she boarded the jet to Baltimore. Everything had gone fine until Agent Reinhart and his ego pulled her off the plane, nearly making her miss her luggage on the carousel in the main terminal.

When she had collected it, she hailed a cab. The driver was a wide, white male with a Ravens hat on. "Where to?"

"Lancaster Promenade, please."

Without a glance in his rearview mirror, the driver floored the cab and sped off. From what Audra understood, Lancaster Promenade was a regular haunt of Maryland students. She would be living in an apartment with two other girls and two men, all of whom attended the university.

Audra had danced easily around Agent Reinhart's questions about her family. She had expected at least one or two questions on her trip. She was slightly disappointed when he turned out to be a prick; her first impression of him was more agreeable. He was an inch or so taller than her father, and a bit broader. He wasn't built, but he wasn't wiry either. He had red hair and a dusting of freckles across his nose. His eyes were muddy brown. Altogether, she found him quite attractive.

She dismissed it, though. _What an asshole._

"What are you going to be studying at the U?" asked the taxi driver, cutting Audra's thoughts short.

"Medicine," she replied.

"Have you ever been to Baltimore before?"

"No, sir."

"Well, let me tell you a little about this road we're on…"

The lecture was enlightening, although coarse. It made the time pass more quickly. Before long, they pulled up to Unit 14 at Lancaster Promenade. The buildings were well kept, though they were obviously built in an outdated style.

"Do you need help with your bags, missy?" the driver asked.

"No, thank you," she said, giving him forty dollars. "Keep the change."

Her suitcase—singular—was not particularly heavy. She had pajamas, three days' worth of clothes, and her toiletries in it. Otherwise, she carried an American Visa Platinum card, which her mother had helped secure for her before departure. It had a ten thousand dollar limit. Audra would purchase everything she needed before school started.

She didn't bother to knock on the door, but pulled her key out. As she stuck it in the lock, the door swung open.

"Fresh meat!" a towering, young, black man announced, with a huge grin on his face. He pulled Audra inside.

"Fresh meat!" three others hollered from in adjoining dining room. There were streamers badly taped to the light fixture and a sign that had been hastily written on notebook paper. It read, "Welcome home!"

At the table sits a gangly girl with glasses and a shock of purple hair. Her name is Louisa Clark; she is a forensic science major. Beside her is Liz Gardner, a voluptuous theater major with straight honey blond hair down to the middle of her back. Scott Shear, tanned darkly enough to have walked off an Abercrombie and Fitch photo shoot, is across from them. The one that answered the door is Phillip Hatch, linebacker for the U of Maryland Terrapins.

Louisa sprang to her feet. "You must be Audra." She said it Audrey. "I'm Louisa Clark." She held out her hand.

"Yes, I'm Audra."

"You sure pack light," Liz Gardner said. "Are you only staying the weekend?"

"Leave off of her, Liz," Phillip Hatch scolded, wagging his finger. "You'll get used to her," he said to Audra. "She's a handful. I'm Phil Hatch."

"Audra Lecter."

Scott Shear let out a whoop. "You owe me ten bucks, Phil! It _is_ really Lecter."

"Don't mind him," Louisa coughed. "He just likes to make bets."

"It's okay," Audra said, already liking her playful housemates. "I promise I won't kill you in your sleep and then eat you."

Liz laughed, a hoarse braying. "I guess that's not the first time you've heard that, huh?"

Audra grinned. "Definitely not."

"Are you related to Hannibal the Cannibal, though?" asked Scott. "That would be nuts!"

"Very distantly."

"But you are? Weird!"

"If ninth cousins even count."

"Whatever, it doesn't matter," said Phil, his bass voice rumbling over everyone else. "Do you want something to drink? We took the liberty of purchasing a few things to celebrate." Liz, Louisa, and Scott each held up six unopened bottles of liquor. Audra poured the first round.

* * *

**Eleven**

Liz Gardner is often difficult to get along with because she is so overbearing. When Audra gets tired of talking to her, she simply leaves and Liz will move on to someone else. Her boyfriend is known only to the housemates as such. They don't see him because Liz goes to his apartment to have sex. The housemates attend every one of Liz's plays from the first one in December of their first year together. They always bring flowers. If they ever stopped living together, Liz would have trouble finding a more loyal following.

Phil Hatch is a psychology major in the time he has around football. Audra finds him jovial and he becomes her closest confidante. She never tells him about her parents. He brings his teammates over occasionally to watch zombie movies. Audra always watches them with him. He is the best cook in the house. Audra did not inherit her father's talents.

Scott Shear falls instantly in love with Audra Lecter and tries his best for the next three years to seduce her. She laughs at him and it hurts his pride. He sleeps with girls at the bars instead of her. He goes often to the beach with his housemates on the weekends. He is the most glowing specimen, but Audra gets all the looks.

Louisa Clark spends most of her time studying, but her housemates coax her out to relax with them in the living room. She likes those times. Audra and Liz will sing outrageously while Phil and Scott pretend to worship at their feet. Louisa does not have Liz's confidence or Audra's natural beauty, but she knows that her housemates like her for herself. That is the most comforting knowledge she had ever had.

The housemates fight their landlord to stay together for all of their four years as undergraduates. Today we find them sprawled out in the living room. It is raining outside. It's November.

"What part of the body can grow to a hundred times its original size?" asked Phil, wagging his eyebrows.

"Don't flatter yourself," Liz said, looking up from _People Magazine_.

"The pupil," Audra said, grinning. "Scott only wishes it was his penis."

Scott made a face at her. "You wouldn't know, would you?" he teased. He hides his desire to make love to her behind jokes. Phil can see through it, but the girls cannot.

"Thankfully," Louisa said.

They are interrupted by a knock at the door. Audra, who is closest, draws the short straw. She opens the door and sees a woman in a business suit.

"Hi," the woman says, "is this the residence of Audra Lecter?"

"Yes. I'm Audra."

"I'm Special Agent Ardelia Mapp, FBI. May I speak with you for a moment?"

Audra ushered her in and offered her coffee. Phil, Liz, Louisa, and Scott were suddenly interested in their homework, and would not budge from their places in the living room.

"Yes, please," said Ardelia Mapp. "Coffee would be wonderful."

Audra pours two cups and sits at the kitchen table, waiting for Agent Mapp to take the first swing.

"I apologize for popping in on you like this," she said, sipping the coffee. "I conducting an investigation on the disappearance of one of the FBI's other agents, Clarice Starling."

Audra looked politely puzzled. "Starling? I don't think I know the name."

"Well, she went missing before you were born, surely. How old are you, Miss Lecter?"

"Twenty-one."

"I thought as much. Agent Starling disappeared in 1990."

"I'm very sorry to hear that."

Ardelia Mapp nodded. "Thank you. The Starling case has been dormant for twenty-three years, but occasionally a lead pops up and I'm called back to duty.

"The FBI has good reason to believe that Agent Starling was abducted by Dr. Hannibal Lecter."

Phil coughed loudly from the other room, excusing himself.

"Oh dear," said Audra. "That would be tragic indeed."

"One would assume so," said Agent Mapp, "but…I have a hunch that Dr. Lecter did not kill Agent Starling."

"A hunch?"

Mapp smirked. "I was at school with Starling; she had a unique business relationship with Dr. Lecter. He, I've come to understand, was very intrigued by her.

"There had been no trace of either Lecter or Starling since 1990…until a month ago."

"Oh?"

"The Czech police saw a woman who matched the description of Starling in Prague. They were hesitant to report it, since it wasn't much of a lead, but Interpol got hold of the information and it trickled down to me. I saw the brief picture. It had to be Starling.

"Since, we've been visiting all the Czech citizens that arrived here on visas within the past five years."

Audra nodded. It was a far-fetched reason, especially since the questioning was conducted by the agent in charge of the dormant investigation. Audra was positive her mother had not been in Prague in the past year. This wasn't about Clarice Starling. "I see. How can I help you then?"

"I have a few questions about your past in Prague and current residence here," said Agent Mapp. "May I get another cup of coffee? Would you like a warm up?"

"Please."

Audra watched Agent Mapp take her mug over to the counter. A flash of white caught her eye as Mapp continued to make polite conversation. Audra squinted and saw a swab appear from Mapp's sleeve. She wiped the edge of the Audra's mug, and then tucked the swab back into its plastic case in her sleeve.

"Medical school is your next destination, then?" Mapp asked, smiling and bringing the two mugs of coffee back to the table.

"Yes. I've been accepted into the program here at Maryland."

"Why this location?"

Audra smiled as sweetly as she could. "I got in."

"What the hell was that all about?" Scott asked once Audra had been Agent Mapp out.

"I don't know," Audra said, "but I'm sure it's fine."

* * *

**Twelve**

Ardelia Mapp pulled her cell phone out once she was in the car and pulling away from Audra Lecter's apartment. It rang twice before it was picked up.

"Reinhart."

"Kenneth, it's Ardelia. I've just been at the Lecter girl's place. I'm going to the lab with the DNA swab. Get the cross references ready."

"I'll be ready. See you in ten."

Agent Kenneth Reinhart knew Ardelia Mapp from a drug trafficking investigation four years earlier. They had been good friends since. Kenneth had found out about Mapp's private investigation of her school mate Clarice Starling's disappearance one Friday night at the bar when Mapp had had one too many gin and limes.

"That bastard Lecter took her," Mapp confessed, "I just know it. He was into her. I don't think he just wanted to fuck her and then kill her. He wanted her in it for the long term. Starling was smart, but she liked Lecter. Her career was over in the Bureau…she might have just run off with him. I bet they've punched out a couple of cannibal kids by now." She giggled drunkenly.

Kenneth brushed her off at first, but something in his mind triggered. A little orange box popped up there. He had been keeping tabs on the Audra Lecter girl since their interview four years before. He had nothing on her, of course. She had made the Dean's List at the University of Maryland and was living with close friends.

"Hey, Ardelia, there may be something to that…"

They agreed that the only way to know for sure if Audra was indeed the child of Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling was to run a DNA crosscheck. Ardelia would use her FBI status to conduct an interview and procure the girl's saliva.

Kenneth was pleased to hear that she had succeeded. He waited now in the lab at Maryland Customs. He had long since been promoted from his airport job to the Baltimore office. Now almost thirty, he was less self-absorbed and more dedicated to his work. His girlfriend, Noreen, had dumped him months ago because he worked too much. It wasn't a big heartbreak.

"Hey," Ardelia Mapp said as she swept into the lab. She brandished a swab tube with a flourish.

"Thanks," Kenneth said, grinning. "You're an angel. This is going to take a couple of days, I think, but do you want me to call you when I find out?"

"I want to be the first to know."

Kenneth worked with the lab techs for three days until they had finally processed Audra Lecter's DNA. Teri, a techie, handed the results to Kenneth.

Lecter, Audra—DNA relationship to Lecter, Hannibal—paternal.

Lecter, Audra—DNA relationship to Starling, Clarice—maternal.

"Ho-ly fuck." Kenneth dialed Ardelia.

She had much the same reaction. "I'm getting down to headquarters. The Starling case is active."

* * *

**Thirteen**

Audra Lecter reported to the FBI Baltimore field office at nine o'clock in the morning on Tuesday, November 26. Agent Mapp was not the only person waiting for her. She immediately recognized Agent Reinhart.

"Good morning, Agent Mapp" Audra said. "Reinhart…it's been a while."

"Nice to see you, too, Miss Lecter. It is still _Miss Lecter_ isn't it?"

"Yes, thank you."

Ardelia said, "Shall we go up to my office?"

Agent Mapp's desk was cluttered with paperwork newly generated for the Starling case. "You are a medical student, correct, Miss Lecter?"

"Yes."

"Are you familiar with DNA charts?"

"Certainly."

Kenneth handed her two sheets of paper. There were no names listed. "What do you see?"

Audra scanned the charts. "This first one is a mother-daughter. The next is the same daughter with the father." She handed the charts back.

"Miss Lecter," said Kenneth, "would you like to know whose charts these are?"

"Oh, I already know," she replied with her sweet smile. "They are the proof that Hannibal Lecter and Clarice Starling are my parents. If you're expecting me to tell you where they are, you'll be disappointed."

Ardelia Mapp took a piece of paper from her desk and handed it to Audra. "I got this note from Starling—your mother—in 1991."

"She says she's all right," Audra said, "why would you be so passionate to find her if she wasn't in trouble?"

"She was kidnapped by a madman!" Kenneth snapped.

"Kenneth," Ardelia chided.

Audra looked over at him. "Kenneth? That's your first name. Finally."

"Miss Lecter, I don't think you realize the gravity of this situation," said Reinhart. "Hannibal Lecter is the murderer of more than ten people domestically and countless others abroad."

"Oh please, Kenneth," Audra sighed. "Countless? In all my life I have only ever known my father to hurt one person, a stupid boy who tried to rape me when I was sixteen."

"What was this boy's name?"

"Vadimas. Don't get so excited, Agent Reinhart." Audra pulled a newspaper clipping from her purse. "I left my parents four years ago just outside of Vilnius, Lithuania. I had a subscription to our home newspaper when I left, to be delivered to my home in Baltimore. This is the only thing I've heard from Momma and Papa in all that time."

The clipping was entirely in Lithuanian.

Kenneth slammed his fist down on the desk. "I can have you arrested for withholding information in a federal investigation, Miss Lecter."

"I'm not withholding anything, Agent Reinhart. Here is where I grew up. Here are my parents' Lithuanian aliases. That is the last place I saw them. I have no idea where they are now." She stood up, collecting her purse. "Now, if you'd excuse me, I have a neurology lecture to attend." She went out.

"I'll get this translated," Ardelia said to Kenneth.

"How do you know she's not going to try to run?"

"Why would she? She's guilty of nothing."

"How do we know she's telling the truth?"

"We can get warrants to search her mail, phone, email…I doubt she's lying, though. Starling and Lecter aren't fools."

Kenneth sighed. "Looks like the only thing we can count on is a future family reunion."


	3. Part III: Father Lucifer

**Fourteen**

The clipping from the _Vilnius Post_ described the violent fire that leveled the home of historian Kazimeras Klees and his wife Emma. Both died in the fire.

Audra Lecter had been honest with Ardelia Mapp and Kenneth Reinhart. She had no idea where her parents had fled to, but she was certain they had not died in the fire that Papa had likely set himself.

After she realized that there was no lead to follow, Agent Mapp kept in contact with Audra. Ardelia and her husband Ed invited Audra over to dinner once a month. After dessert, Ardelia would send the kids to the basement with Ed. She and Audra sipped coffee as Audra told her about the life of her mother, Ardelia's estranged friend. They became close, and Ardelia's children would only ever consent to see Dr. Audra when she began practicing.

Much to Audra's surprise, Kenneth Reinhart also remained in her acquaintance. After the phone taps and mail reading stint failed to turn up anything useful, he removed the equipment, avoided Liz Gardner's flirtations, and asked Audra out for coffee.

Kenneth was the only 'family member' present when Audra received her bachelor's degree. When the lease was up at Lancaster Promenade, the friends disbanded. Phil set off for Dallas, Texas and the Cowboys. Louisa moved back to Albany, New York. Liz, who had gradually become her best friend, went to Manhattan to act. She only got a few small parts before she went back to school to get her teaching degree. Scott took over his father's company in Chicago, as he always said he wouldn't. Audra was the only one staying in the Baltimore area. Kenneth offered her the upstairs bedroom in his apartment downtown. She took it.

Kenneth watched over her as she beat herself through years of medical school and residency. He cooked for her to make sure she still ate. He locked her upstairs to make sure she still slept. Neither of them got much sleep the first night they spent together, though.

Audra's mentor and medical school adviser, Robert, gave her away at the wedding two years later. She was partway through her residency when she became Audra Reinhart. She could send no invitation to her parents, but she put an ad in the _Globe_.

Dr. Reinhart was much sought after as her career developed. Kenneth was put in charge of Maryland Customs.

* * *

**Fifteen**

Audra Reinhart is bringing Phillip, her oldest son, now six, home from soccer practice. She has her daughter, Nora, four, in the booster seat in the back. Audra is pregnant with her third child, a boy who will be called John.

Kenneth is waiting at home to take charge of Phillip and Nora. Audra kisses him before she takes off for the hospital.

"Hi, Dr. Reinhart," says Kyle, the receptionist.

"Hey, Kyle, have the chart for me?"

"Yes, ma'am. You've got a very important patient in Room 31. Nurses think its terminal. His wife's there with him."

Audra lifted her brows, looking down at the chart. "Great way to start the day. See you later."

The hospital wasn't particularly busy in the afternoon as Audra made her way down to 31. The patient was a Michael Shoemaker, ninety-three years old. He had chest pains. Terminal, yeah, the guy was ninety-three.

Audra knocked briskly on the door before opening it. "Hello, I'm Dr. Reinhart. I'll be taking a look at you today, Mr. Shoemaker." She still had her nose in her chart.

"Hello, darling," said Mrs. Shoemaker quietly from the chair beside her husband's bed.

The clipboard clattered to the ground. In the disguise of twenty-one more years was Clarice Starling. She held tightly the hand of Hannibal Lecter, who was lying on the bed.

Gently, a smile spread across Audra's face. "Hello, Momma, Papa."

"Dearest Audra," Hannibal croaked, reaching feebly out to her.

She went to his side, pressing a kiss to his lips. "Oh, Papa," she whispered, "I've missed you."

"And I you. Are you surprised to see us?"

Audra barked a strangled laugh, wiping her eyes. "Yes, but it's a wonderful surprise." She didn't ask when they had gotten to the States or how.

"You're going to have a baby," Clarice said. "How wonderful, darling!"

Audra put a hand on her belly. "My third, John Hannibal."

Clarice's smile widened. She was still striking, even though she was approaching seventy-five. "When are you due?"

"September, so I have a few months yet."

"I, alas, do not," said Hannibal.

"Now, Papa, I haven't even looked at you yet," Audra scolded.

"You don't need to, Audra. I'm dying."

"Papa, please…at least let me examine you."

"Absolutely not. I plan to check out of this place this afternoon and go back to the house. I will not die here." He was determined. The hospital was too impersonal. He had always demanded the finer things in life.

"It's what we both want," Clarice said, leaning closer to Hannibal. "We just had to make sure you knew we were here."

"Will you come to the house and make my deathbed comfortable?" Hannibal said, almost laughing.

"Of course, Papa."

* * *

**Sixteen**

The first person to learn of Dr. Hannibal Lecter's death in April was Ardelia Mapp. Audra asked her to come to the private service that was taking place on the thirty acre estate that Audra had recently acquired. Audra oversaw the completion of a certificate of death. She took a vial of blood for the FBI to DNA crosscheck and printed both of her father's cold hands.

Ardelia came dressed in her usual duty suit. She soon realized, though, that she was attending a funeral and felt out of place. A hand touches her shoulder. She turns to see Clarice Starling.

Audra watched them hug and talk from a distance. She was holding a passage from Dante that she would read over the grave in one hand and held Kenneth's hand in the other. He had Phil and Nora at his side.

"I think its show time, dear heart," Kenneth said. She nodded.

Once Audra was finished with her passage, she set a red rose at the base of the headstone, on which was written 'HANNIBAL LECTER, 1938 to 2031.'

"A beautiful rose for a beautiful father," she said quietly. Kenneth and the children placed their own flowers on the grave. Ardelia simply stood and watched.

Clarice approached the headstone last. She knelt and spoke, too quietly for Audra and the others to hear. She stood, her eyes dry, and said, "Thank you all for coming."

Audra and Kenneth stayed behind at the house as Clarice and Ardelia took the certificate of death, blood, and fingerprints to FBI Headquarters in Washington, D.C.

The official statement hit the press the next day. Dr. Hannibal Lecter, notorious criminal, has died at 93, still a fugitive. Dr. Lecter leaves behind his wife, Clarice Starling Lecter, a one-time FBI Special Agent that went missing in 1990, and his daughter, Dr. Audra Lecter Reinhart. He will be missed by his family. The Lecter and Starling files are permanently closed.

**End**


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